International law firm Bird & Bird has advised Mothercare on the appointment of Boots as its UK and Republic of Ireland franchise partner. The partnership will enable Mothercare to have its branded clothing, home and travel products sold in Boots stores from autumn 2020 as well as online on the Boots website.
The Bird & Bird team advised Mothercare on the franchise, intellectual property and supply chain elements of the long term deal. The franchise partnership will be for an initial period of 10 years. Last year, Bird & Bird took a lead role in advising Mothercare plc, and its wholly owned subsidiary Mothercare Global Brand, on a major restructuring and refinancing.
The team was led by head of the international Retail & Consumer sector group Graeme Payne alongside partners Mark Holah (IP, London), Simon Allport (Corporate, London), Joss Hargrave (Restructuring & Insolvency, London) and associates Megan Harrison (Retail & Consumer, London), James Pearson (IP, London), James Fowler (Commercial, London) and Hanna Nanda (Banking & Finance, London).
In addition to the partnership with Boots, Bird & Bird also advised Mothercare on its new twenty-year franchise and supply chain agreements with its longstanding franchise partner Alshaya Group.
Kevin Rusling and Andrew Cook, joint Chief Executive Officers at Mothercare comment: “The finalisation of the franchise agreement with Boots is fantastic news for the brand and the millions of Mothercare customers across the UK. It is also great news for Mothercare and our wider group of stakeholders. Bird & Bird's expertise advising us on the completion of this partnership as well as the restructuring and refinancing elements has helped support us on this journey and we look forward to continuing to work with them in the future.”
Graeme Payne, head of Bird & Bird's International Retail & Consumer sector group adds: “The completion of this partnership between Mothercare and Boots builds on the significant progress the company has made since its restructuring and refinancing deal last year. Bird & Bird has a longstanding relationship with Mothercare and we are proud to support the company on its partnership with Boots. We look forward to continuing to support them in the months ahead."
